Persuasive Essay
Instincts or Habit?:
Serial Killers are either man-made or products of their environment.
Persuasive Essay
Alyssa Clark
When you think of nature, you probably think of the outdoors? Maybe a deer, a couple of trees, no electricity or homes, just miles of trees, and a bunch of animals living in harmony? That is correct, but what about human nature? Human nature is a different type of animal.
Many scholars define human nature as one of the most exciting and complex areas of physiology. Some even suggest that “Human nature is evil, and goodness is caused by intention” (Michell and Blair 112). Human nature goes hand and hand with nurture. Nurture is the idea that a person is born a blank canvas, and their environment and lifestyle influence who a person becomes. Nature is when a person is genetically predisposed to act a certain way from the minute at birth. The nature vs. nurture argument is important in examining the development of human beings. There are two sides to the human development arguments in psychology: are people born the way in which they will be in the world, or are people just products of their surroundings?
Nature is the way a person acts without any influence from the environment. Nature is a person’s own will and mentality. As defined by psychologists, nature is how a person's brain chemistry is constructed while in the womb, which leads to a predisposition of people to develop specific characteristics and even develop specific mental issues (Highsman et al. 289). Nature goes hand and hand with genetics. Genetics in physiology is a puzzle that goes into making one’s nature as developed or complex as presented to the world. Genetics can also impact a person’s development. This means a person can be vulnerable to developing a particular mental illness or behavioral issues. “A child susceptible to genetically driven violent conduct does not necessarily become a criminal”(Michell and Blair 121).
A prime way nature is exhibited through humans is through twin experiments. These twin experiments are conducted by colleges and universities to show how people of the same genetic makeup can be separated at birth and throughout their life make the same decisions and end up having similar lifestyles. In the study conducted by the American Sociology Association, this experiment was a decade longitudinal study. This study followed the twins from when they were about three years old to when they were in their late twenties.
These twin experiments are conducted by colleges and universities to show how people of the same genetic makeup can be separated at birth and throughout their life make the same decisions and end up having similar lifestyles. In the study conducted by the American Sociology Association, this experiment was a decade longitudinal study. This study followed the twins from when they were about three years old to when they were in their late twenties.
The twins Benard J. Shapiro and Harold T. Shapiro are identical twins. This means that their DNA is a hundred percent the same; in other words, they are just clones of each other. Despite being raised by different parents, these twins ended up having very similar jobs and families. Harold and Benard ended up both being professors in big universities, Princeton and McGill. Harold and Benard both took up master's in statistics and ended up living in a suburban neighborhood with a wife and two three children (Guo 43). In this study, it suspects that these twins had very different environments when growing up but ended up developing similar traits. Bernard grew up in a suburban household; mom and dad were upper-middle class, he went to a private school, was an athlete, and excelled academically. His traits were confidence, intelligence, and humor (Guo 47). Harold grew up in an environment of the lower middle class; he also lived in the suburbs he attended public schools. Harold grew up excelling in sports and academics. Harold’s traits were similar to Benard’s; he was also confident, intelligent but was also very timid (Guo 45). In this twin study, the idea of nature excels; these twins show that a person is not just a product of their environment, but it is what is inside of them biologically that makes them who they are, and those genetics play a big role in how a person interacts with their environment and what traits are made as a result.
Nurture is the idea that every person is born as a blank slate and that a person's environment is what molds a person. The three most important environmental aspects are childhood environment, traumas/experiences, and social development. A person’s childhood environment is where most of the development of right and wrong occurs, and also the core of a person’s personality. It is seen that a person's household structure is the environment in which a person will try to create themselves when trying to start their own family or home. It is shown that if a person were to have grown up in an abusive or neglectful household, that child may develop antisocial or violent behaviors. “In his book Serial Killers, Joel Norris describes the cycles of violence as generational: ‘Parents who abuse their children, physically as well as psychologically, instill in them an almost instinctive reliance upon violence as a first resort to any challenge.” In his book, Joel Norris who is a well-known physiatrist, states that people who are stuck in a loop of violence tend to use violence as a way to solve issues or a way to resolve issues or bumps in the road. In addition, if the child witnesses the way that problem gets solved is through physical and emotional violence the child will start to incorporate it in their own life (Highsman et al. 78).
Trauma is what can be known as what shapes a person into who they are and how they react to certain situations. People who experience trauma in their life can react in two different ways: to either internalize the pain or externalize the problem. People can be thought to internalize problems and issues that can lead to pent-up aggression and misplaced anger. For example, in today's society, it is a common idea for the boys to be taught to keep all their feelings on the inside and that a “real man” just keeps all the feelings and emotions inside of their head. This can lead to a lot of mental distress and the inability to make connections with people. This can lead to the boys taking out violence on others (friends, family, or even animals) and this type of development can also lead to anti behavioral tendencies. Women are taught to do the exact opposite, women are taught to wear their hearts on their sleeves and do not hide their feelings. It is more “ladylike” to express feelings and be an open book. When people are taught in this light, a person is more likely to develop stranger bonds with others and not develop an antisocial personality (Zizzo 879) .
People need social skills to get through daily living, and if a person is not able to develop these skills, life will become extremely challenging. Social skills are the ability for a person to communicate with others and have productive interactions and are able to communicate verbally and non verbally with others; this can be through gestures and body language, and also through appearance. Social skills are developed in a person’s childhood and the skills which are observed in the child’s household and also what is seen with their family and parents. Social skills are sometimes hard for people to be able to develop these skills if the environment is abusive or neglectful. When a kid is in its prime of developing skills which are around the age of seven or eight years old, that child is a sponge. These children will absorb everything seen or taught to them. If the kid views abusive behavior and or tendencies as expected due to these behaviors in their household, the kid will start to incorporate these behaviors into their own life. (Highsman et al. 80).
In physiology, there is another argument of nature and nurture which is a blend of both nature and nurture. Dr. Adrian Raine, a well-known criminologist states, biological and social factors all add up into making a serial murderer. “The connection between genetics, social environment, and criminal behavior appears to be a reality, although to varying degrees across criminals” (Mutti, Zadnik, and Adams 4). In an article written by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) the profiler Jim Clemente states that it takes both of these factors to influence a person's natural behavior. People with violent behavior are known to have genetic predispositions in natural behavior development. Serial killers linked to mass acts of violence are known to have the disadvantages genetically by containing certain genetics like the enzyme monoamine- oxidase which is linked to a person displaying violent behavior (Highsman et al. 289). A person needs to have all pieces of the puzzle to equal a violent person. The pieces of the puzzle consists of having a genetic predisposition and a trigger of violent personality. This trigger of the bad behavior can be a traumatic event from childhood such as abuse, neglect, or a tragic accident. That could have sent the release of these toxins through the body.
Nature versus nurture is complex. Nature is the idea that a person is born the way that they will be seen to the world. If a person was born to kill then nothing will stop that person from committing these acts of violence. Nurture is the idea that every person is born as a block of clay and the world around will mold the person into the person the world sees. The main things that influence a person's behavior is a person's childhood, traumatic events, and coping mechanisms. If a person has a traumatic childhood which could mean neglect, abuse, and inability to develop social skills. Social skills are important for a person's growth and having the ability to communicate with others. If a person is unable to learn the skills to be able to communicate with others then it could lead to Antisocial personality disorder and an inability to make connections with others. Men and women handle trauma in different ways and are examples of the two different ways that trauma is managed either internal and external. The way in which people are raised to handle trauma. This paper's focus is on how nature and nurture are two halves of a whole that when put together can create something great or something incredibly awful. Genetics loads the gun, and nature is what makes the person pull the trigger.
Annotated Bibliography
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Blair, James, Derek Mitchell, and Karina Blair. "The Psychopath: Emotion and the Brain."
(2005). Accessed on November 12, 2020.
This source provides information on how a person's environment has much influence on how a person grows and traits a person is likely to develop. This source also sheds light on how a person is able to develop violent traits, and what can be done to help prevent the development of aggressive behavior.
Guo, Guang. "Twin studies: What can They Tell Us about Nature and Nurture?" Contexts 4.3
(2005): 43-47. Accessed on December 1,2020.
This source provides information about a twin study that was conducted by the National Psychology Association. This twin study provides information about how a person's nature is developed and how a person's personality can be influenced by its environment and a person's genetics are the blueprint and the environment is the course in which blueprints take.
Highsmith, J., Mercado, M., Hernandez, J., & Madrigal, S. Nature (MAOA) and Nurture
in a Criminal. Accessed on November 11, 2020.
This source provides information on the nurture side of the argument. This article explains how nature is biological and that a person can have genetic predispositions to act a certain way and that a person's nature is pre-determined in the womb. There is such a thing as having an aggressive gene and when that gene gets triggered it can cause a person to go on a violent rampage.
Mutti, Donald O., Karla Zadnik, and Anthony J. Adams. "Myopia. The Nature versus Nurture
Debate Goes On." Investigative ophthalmology & visual science 37.6 (1996): 952-957. Accessed on November 14, 2020.
This article provides information on both arguments and then a mixture of both arguments. This article also provides the main arguments on how it is a mixture of both and how you cant have nature without nurture and that genetics and environment depend on each other to grow and develop.
Zizzo, Daniel John. "Empirical Evidence on Interdependent Preferences: Nature or Nurture?."
Cambridge Journal of Economics 27.6 (2003): 867-880. Accessed on December 8, 2020.
In this article it provides information on the nurture argument and how the nurture argument states that a person is just a product of its environment. That nurture is based on how a person is raised and if that person experienced traumatic events and their social development skills.